What is Neuroscience?

Neuroscience is the study of the nervous system. It is a cross-disciplinary field that engages scientists, engineers and physicians in investigating how the nervous system develops and functions on a cellular level as well as the mechanisms that underlie behavior, cognition, mental disorders and neurological disease. An understanding of how the nervous system functions spans both molecular and cellular activity that is best taught by cell and molecular neurobiologists, and behavior that is best taught by psychologists. For this reason undergraduate instruction in neuroscience is done primarily by faculty from the LSA Departments of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology (MCDB) and Psychology.

The overall goals of this major are to:

provide a course of study in the discipline of Neuroscience that integrates cell/molecular and behavioral components of the field.

offer abundant opportunities for undergraduate research on cutting edge issues.

provide a course of study that prepares students for graduate training in the field of Neuroscience, for a career in biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries or any of the health professions (human medicine, veterinary medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy) or for any other career where strong analytical skills are required, such as law or business.